2013 CB Draft: Pacific Division Press Conferences

[rondoallaturca]

So the Lakers won't mind every team double teaming Dirk and leaving him open because he can't, well, shoot when he's on the floor? That might be hard for Dirk, and for the Lakers offense, unless he's only playing limited minutes. And as good of a defensive player he is, no minutes = no impact.

So again, if he's on the floor with Dirk, teams can leave him alone, let him beat them to make sure Dirk is contained, and the Lakers are fine with that?

Absolutely. You think Dirk isn't used to double teaming by now? He gets his odd but effective off-balance jumpers off regardless of how many people you send at him, but he's also one of the best in the business passing out of traps. If you send a double-team Dirk's way, LRMAM might not be an offensive threat, but with two competent shooters at the 1 and 2 and Gasol being a great off-ball screener at the 5, a flex offense can easily make the proper adjustments to open up someone who CAN burn you on offense. It's not like our center is strictly a post player, and it's not like our guards can't hit the three. Last time I checked, the Thunder did just fine playing a center who scores just 4.2 points in 25.1 minutes because all four of their other players can score from various spots on the court.

Besides, like I covered earlier, this isn't even a pressing issue because LRMAM is a starter only in name. He'll start the halves to set the pace, but there's no reason we should be playing him more than Delfino or Pondexter. So please, keep fixating on LRMAM in the lineup and figuring out how doubling off of him might benefit your defense. Let's see how your team fares when they find out they're actually going up against one of the best shooting lineups in the league.

[Who]

I think Pondexter should start over Mbah a Moute.

[Yoki_IsTheName]

So the Lakers won't mind every team double teaming Dirk and leaving him open because he can't, well, shoot when he's on the floor? That might be hard for Dirk, and for the Lakers offense, unless he's only playing limited minutes. And as good of a defensive player he is, no minutes = no impact.

So again, if he's on the floor with Dirk, teams can leave him alone, let him beat them to make sure Dirk is contained, and the Lakers are fine with that?

Absolutely. You think Dirk isn't used to double teaming by now? He gets his odd but effective off-balance jumpers off regardless of how many people you send at him, but he's also one of the best in the business passing out of traps. If you send a double-team Dirk's way, LRMAM might not be an offensive threat, but with two competent shooters at the 1 and 2 and Gasol being a great off-ball screener at the 5, a flex offense can easily make the proper adjustments to open up someone who CAN burn you on offense. It's not like our center is strictly a post player, and it's not like our guards can't hit the three. Last time I checked, the Thunder did just fine playing a center who scores just 4.2 points in 25.1 minutes because all four of their other players can score from various spots on the court.

Besides, like I covered earlier, this isn't even a pressing issue because LRMAM is a starter only in name. He'll start the halves to set the pace, but there's no reason we should be playing him more than Delfino or Pondexter. So please, keep fixating on LRMAM in the lineup and figuring out how doubling off of him might benefit your defense. Let's see how your team fares when they find out they're actually going up against one of the best shooting lineups in the league.

I think teams would love to see the Lakers' offense stagnate when LRMM is on the floor.

And just because Dirk knows how to deal with double teams, doesnt mean he's the only guy who will get double teamed. You said it yourself, Lakers would not mind having LRMM open despite not making shots. That gives teams to double ANYONE that has the ball, still managing to get a man on everyone else but Luc. And while Dirk can handle it, I'm not sure if if everyone.

And of course the defensive philosophy changes once he's out on the floor. But rest assured, when he's in, he better make shots because there will be two guys on the ball everytime, and rotating and he's the only one open. Whether it's 2 minutes or 20, having LRMM on the floor will put so much pressure on the ballhandler/carrier while he's still there with this defensive strategy.

[nickagneta]

I think Pondexter should start over Mbah a Moute.

I agree. What I have seen out of the Fresh Prince over the last year or so isn't what I remember from the defensive stopping force he appeared to be in 2010-11. I have liked Pondexter since he was at Washington and was hoping the C's got him that year he came out(guess I am happy with Bradley), but I think Pondexter has developed into a very good wing defender with a quality looking outside shot.

I just have more confidence in QP being able to play at a high level next year than LRMAM

[rondoallaturca]

I think teams would love to see the Lakers' offense stagnate when LRMM is on the floor.

And just because Dirk knows how to deal with double teams, doesnt mean he's the only guy who will get double teamed. You said it yourself, Lakers would not mind having LRMM open despite not making shots. That gives teams to double ANYONE that has the ball, still managing to get a man on everyone else but Luc. And while Dirk can handle it, I'm not sure if if everyone.

And of course the defensive philosophy changes once he's out on the floor. But rest assured, when he's in, he better make shots because there will be two guys on the ball everytime, and rotating and he's the only one open. Whether it's 2 minutes or 20, having LRMM on the floor will put so much pressure on the ballhandler/carrier while he's still there with this defensive strategy.

If your team can successfully follow the ball all over the court and maintain an effective double-team pressure without scrambling all over the place, your team deserves to win the championship right now.

[rondoallaturca]

Well I've changed it so that QP is ahead of the Fresh Prince on our depth chart now just to avoid the whole confusion that stems from LRMAM being a starter in name only.

[nickagneta]

Golden State: Okay I will bring up the elephant in the room if no one else will. You have Demar DeRozan as one of your core guys. That means you have a back court that has a returning injured player who is a poor three point shooter and a SG that is a horrifically poor three point shooter. Both starters are best when going to the basket. How are you going to counteract the flood of zone defenses you are going to see that are going to pack it in inside and make you beat them by shooting over the zone?

[Yoki_IsTheName]

I think teams would love to see the Lakers' offense stagnate when LRMM is on the floor.

And just because Dirk knows how to deal with double teams, doesnt mean he's the only guy who will get double teamed. You said it yourself, Lakers would not mind having LRMM open despite not making shots. That gives teams to double ANYONE that has the ball, still managing to get a man on everyone else but Luc. And while Dirk can handle it, I'm not sure if if everyone.

And of course the defensive philosophy changes once he's out on the floor. But rest assured, when he's in, he better make shots because there will be two guys on the ball everytime, and rotating and he's the only one open. Whether it's 2 minutes or 20, having LRMM on the floor will put so much pressure on the ballhandler/carrier while he's still there with this defensive strategy.

If your team can successfully follow the ball all over the court and maintain an effective double-team pressure without scrambling all over the place, your team deserves to win the championship right now.

That's a good point, and taken.

But the Lakers will most likely still go 4 on 5 on offense when Luc is on the floor. That could hurt the offense entirely. But you seemed not worried.

But not taking away from what you guys did. This is an excellent squad who is a certain contender.

[Kane3387]

Question for the Warriors? You've got a pair of excellent guards both coming off ACL surgery, Rajon Rondo and Lou Williams. Can you give us a sense of where both stand in their rehab? Also a look at the rotation you'll use if neither is ready for the start of the season?

Lou Williams

Lou Williams (ACL surgery) hopes to return for the start of training camp.
Williams had surgery nearly six months ago and his rehab has progressed to include jogging and a variety of drills. He can't yet make certain cuts or run full speed, but the reknown Dr. James Andrews was "pleased with [Williams'] progress" during a checkup three weeks ago. Given that the Hawks have five players under contract at the moment, it's very hard to project his role next season. Jul 3 - 11:48 AM

Rajon Rondo

Coach Brad Stevens refused to put a timetable on Rajon Rondo's return Thursday.
"I have never heard a timeline from him and the latest that I've heard from our medical staff is that he's progressing well," Stevens said. Media speculation and hints from teammates have suggested that Rondo will be back about a month into the season. We'll know more once training camp commences.

Good Question. I expect Lou Williams to be back by the beginning of the season. If he does miss time I don't think it goes into December.

As for Rondo. There are reports saying he will be back by the beginning of the season but it's probably safe to assume he misses 15-20 games. I think that's the tops and he will then  be coming back sometime in December if that's the case.

If Rondo is out then Reggie Jackson becomes the starter. His minutes increase dramatically. I think he will be fine in the short term based on how strong he performed in place of Westbrook last year. Williams will also run some backup PG if Rondo is out and he is back before him.

If both are out then Jackson will play a lot. He's young and should be fine from a stamina standpoint. The offense will be different if Rondo is out. With Rondo the offense is predicated much more on Pick and pop/roll with LA. As well as Screens by the bigs to free Rondo so he can attack and break the defense down. At that point he can pick defenses apart based on who rolls to help. Whether it's Derozan on the cut, Rush in the corner, dropping a dime to Roy/LA, or hitting LA on the Free Throw line corner ala KG. The offense will run through Rondo a lot, but you will still see post ups.

Without Rondo the offense runs through the bigs much more. Primarily LA. He will be give the ball both on the block and the high post. Everyone will aid in bringing the ball up the court if neither Reggie, Rajon, or Lou are in the game. That would be rare. You would also see more isolation for Derozan and Lou.

Good Question, Hope that helps.

[Kane3387]

So who is the starting SF in GS?

Brandon Rush. He is expected to be back for training camp. I think he compliments the rest of the lineup nicely.

Via Hollinger

Scouting report
+ Quality defender with good size and athleticism. Lousy handle inhibits scoring.
+ Good outside shooter and can finish at rim, but doesn't move without ball.
+ Improved rebounder. No in-between game. Rarely fouls.

He wont be asked to handle the ball too often unless it's helping with getting it over half court. He will primarily either stand in the corner for spacing or cut when his man leaves him for the half court. He's an athlete so he will be running on the break.

More from Hollinger

He rarely gets to the rim despite his athleticism -- he just doesn't have that kind of handle or feel -- but he shot 45.2 percent on 3s and 46.2 percent on long 2s. Rush also shot well in the basket area, as always (67.2 percent), and as a result he was fourth among shooting guards in both 2-point shooting and true shooting percentage.

He will also be defending the best wing players on the other team.

Defensively, Rush really dialed up his effort. He nearly doubled his shot-block rate and has some spectacular rejections of opposing bigs around the basket. Overall he was second in blocks per minute among shooting guards, and amazingly he also had the third-lowest foul rate. Rush also upped his rebound rate to a career best, ranking 10th at his position. His other data wasn't as strong, but subjectively his performance last season supported the idea that he's a plus defender, especially when he can guard 2s.

[Kane3387]

Golden State: Okay I will bring up the elephant in the room if no one else will. You have Demar DeRozan as one of your core guys. That means you have a back court that has a returning injured player who is a poor three point shooter and a SG that is a horrifically poor three point shooter. Both starters are best when going to the basket. How are you going to counteract the flood of zone defenses you are going to see that are going to pack it in inside and make you beat them by shooting over the zone?

Good Question. I ecpect my team to be on the run a lot because of the great defense we will employ. Both LA and Roy allow almost nothing at the rim and Rush and Rondo are talented defenders. The bigs will alter shots and force longer shots.

I believe teams will shoot low percentages against my team and I have the players to get rebounds.

If I am on the fast break then teams can't really set up the zone too much. I think I have the athletes to run and Rondo is the best at finding guys.

The best way to defeat the zone is dribble penetration. Rondo is one of the best at getting into the teeth of the defense and he should be helped dramatically with the screen setting of Roy and LA.

That being said we will at times be in the half court. And when we are there will be a lot of Pick and Roll/Pop with LA and Rondo. At that point Rondo will be undoubtedly looking for LA and the jumper. If he isn't it's because he has a lane  and at that point the defense will have to roll and recover. That's when he can hit Rush in the corner, look for Derozan on a cut, finish, or dump off to Hibbert.

At times our shots might not be falling and the game slowed down, but again we are very strong defensively. Incredibly strong. That will be our calling card on most nights.

Defense and Rebounding. Controlling the paint.

[nickagneta]

I always thought the best way to kill a zone was to hit the open outside looks they give you that causes the zone to come out and defend that outside shot and then dribble drive through the opens. Just trying to beat zone down the floor before it gets set up will cause a coach to have a couple people to break back and stop the drive to the lane before the zone sets up.

I have no qualms with your defense or inside game but the lack of any type of long outside shooting from the two players playing the most minutes int he back court seriously hurts that team.

[Kane3387]

I always thought the best way to kill a zone was to hit the open outside looks they give you that causes the zone to come out and defend that outside shot and then dribble drive through the opens. Just trying to beat zone down the floor before it gets set up will cause a coach to have a couple people to break back and stop the drive to the lane before the zone sets up.

I have no qualms with your defense or inside game but the lack of any type of long outside shooting from the two players playing the most minutes int he back court seriously hurts that team.

Rondo and AB arent great shooters. There are plenty of ways to beat a zone. For example the Cs utilized playing from behind a lot to do it.

Strategy - Attack from Behind the Zone

One of the best ways to attack from behind the zone it to always have at least one player in the short corner area.

You'll find that on almost every ball reversal the player in the short corner will be open. Then the wing can pass down to the open player in the short corner.

Once the ball is there, this is a very tough place to guard because at the moment none of the defenders are looking at the short corner player (because he or she is "behind" the zone).

Once the ball is caught in the short corner you have several excellent options to get high percentage shots...

1) If wide open, the short corner player can take one step to the basket for a lay up. Derozan/Rondo

2) The short corner player can shot fake and take it to the hole. Derozan/Rondo

3) The player in the middle can dive to the basket and receive the pass from short corner (this seems to be open for a lay up almost 50% of the time). LA/Hibbert

4) If they double down, the short corner can kick it out for a wide open three pointer. Rush

http://www.breakthroughbasketball.com/offense/3-zone-strategies.html

You don't need great shooting. You need strategy and with the talent I have I can utilize other ways to score on a zone. Look at the Pacers. Their starting lineup was Hill, Stephenson, George, West, and Hibbert.

None of their starters shot 36% from three.

http://espn.go.com/nba/team/stats/_//ind/indiana-pacers

Look at Memphis. Same thing.

http://espn.go.com/nba/team/stats/_/name/mem/memphis-grizzlies

Both these teams were in the final 4. The zone didn't kill their lack of outside shooting. Great interior play and talent can overcome zone defenses.

[fairweatherfan]

He will also be defending the best wing players on the other team.

Defensively, Rush really dialed up his effort. He nearly doubled his shot-block rate and has some spectacular rejections of opposing bigs around the basket. Overall he was second in blocks per minute among shooting guards, and amazingly he also had the third-lowest foul rate. Rush also upped his rebound rate to a career best, ranking 10th at his position. His other data wasn't as strong, but subjectively his performance last season supported the idea that he's a plus defender, especially when he can guard 2s.

A lot of other teams have their best wing at the 3, often larger 3s.  How comfortable are you having Rush check the LeBrons, Durants, and Carmelos of the league, especially coming off a major knee injury?

Followup - how will your team match up with small-ball lineups?  Will you go small yourself or stay big and sacrifice some perimeter defense to press an advantage inside?  If it's the latter, do you put Aldridge on those big wings playing 4, or do you put Rush on them and try to hide Aldridge on a lesser offensive threat?  Or run a zone or some other option?

[Kane3387]

He will also be defending the best wing players on the other team.

Defensively, Rush really dialed up his effort. He nearly doubled his shot-block rate and has some spectacular rejections of opposing bigs around the basket. Overall he was second in blocks per minute among shooting guards, and amazingly he also had the third-lowest foul rate. Rush also upped his rebound rate to a career best, ranking 10th at his position. His other data wasn't as strong, but subjectively his performance last season supported the idea that he's a plus defender, especially when he can guard 2s.

A lot of other teams have their best wing at the 3, often larger 3s.  How comfortable are you having Rush check the LeBrons, Durants, and Carmelos of the league, especially coming off a major knee injury?

Followup - how will your team match up with small-ball lineups?  Will you go small yourself or stay big and sacrifice some perimeter defense to press an advantage inside?  If it's the latter, do you put Aldridge on those big wings playing 4, or do you put Rush on them and try to hide Aldridge on a lesser offensive threat?  Or run a zone or some other option?

Rush will be the first line of defense, but he can't stop those guys. No one can. It will be team defense especially with the rim protection that will make life hard on those guys. As for specific strategy on specific guys? I think that will be based on the rest of the oppostition's roster. I am sure I will double team at times and rotate help to give Rush more support.

When I go small you will see LA at the Center more. Draymond might play the 4. He played well for GS in big time moments and I think he can handle the pressure.

But ultimately going small will only depend on my team's ability to magnify the advantages of size. I don't honestly want to adjust my lineup to the oppositions. I want them to adjust to me. It just depends. I can answer that question better if I know who the lineup I am facing is. To do so in a general term is tough, especially b/c my strength is inside with the Bigs.